Surveys conducted by the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) show that people have a better mail experience from mail pieces or envelopes that have traditional postage stamps affixed as compared to mail pieces that use meter marks or permit mail. This is because the mail appears more personalized when a traditional stamp is used, while metered mail and permit mail appears to be machine-generated and impersonal.
Some existing mail systems have the capability to apply stamps to mail pieces, such as direct mail that is sent to customers. These systems use large rolls of stamps that are applied to envelopes in an automated fashion at high speed. The existing systems are limited to using stamps of a single value that can be applied to bulk mailing pieces. This limitation prevents the use of postage stamps on bulk mailing jobs that have variable contents. This is particularly a problem for mail pieces that include personalized offers that vary based on the individual receiving them. The contents of such mail pieces often vary depending upon factors such as the location, income level, or buying habits of the recipient. As a result, the weight of individual mail pieces vary, which requires different postage amounts for each mail piece.